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Eight years after Gov. Mitch Daniels made reform of Indiana's long-troubled child welfare system one of his top priorities, the state's safety net for child abuse and neglect victims is at a crossroads.

Daniels, who used his bully pulpit and the state's checkbook to establish the Department of Child Services and champion ambitious reforms, is leaving office in a few weeks, and a cloud still hangs over the agency.

In the wake of several child-death investigations conducted by The Star and other Indiana newspapers, a legislative study committee has had a series of public hearings to find out why children still are falling through the cracks -- many times with deadly consequences.

An investigation by The Star found that at least 36 children who came to the attention of DCS have died since 2007.

Some testimony at the hearings touted improvements at DCS, but witnesses also revealed a host of challenges.

"It has been painful at times to listen to what children and families have gone through," said Cathleen Graham, executive director of IARCCA, an association of children and family services providers. "But I think it was a very good effort to get people communicating and working together again."

Governor-elect Mike Pence is likely to be confronted by many of those challenges early in his administration. And the first order of business -- the one many child welfare workers consider the most important one -- will be to appoint a new leader for DCS.

Amid the committee's work, the agency's longtime director and architect, former Marion County juvenile judge James Payne, resigned after a Star investigation raised ethical questions about his personal involvement in his grandchildren's DCS case.

Daniels named Payne's former chief of staff, John Ryan, to head the agency, but it is unclear if Ryan will stay in that post when Pence takes office.

Opinions about how to fill that leadership void and move forward cover the gamut: from confidence that a few tweaks can correct the bulk of the problems to calls for Pence to order a complete overhaul of the agency.

"Never been better than today"

At one extreme is Daniels, who remains fiercely protective and proud of DCS.

"By every honest appraisal and in the judgment of the most respected national authorities," Daniels said in a statement, "child protection in Indiana has never been better than today."

At the other end of the spectrum is Carole Davis of Evansville, who heads the grass-roots advocacy group kiddosfirst.org. She says major changes are essential, noting that DCS, according to the testimony of agency officials, spent only 6.1 percent of its budget on prevention services and programs.

"That is just unbelievable," said Davis, who has called for an outside performance audit of DCS. "I really hope they blow it up and start over new."

What Pence will do is an open question. He has not displayed the same commitment to child welfare reforms as Daniels -- at least not on the campaign trail or in public statements. When The Star reached out to Pence's staff, asking about the concerns raised in the committee hearings and his visions for the future of DCS, a spokeswoman responded with a one-sentence statement.

"Gov.-elect Pence pledged to improve the health, safety and well-being of all Hoosiers, especially children," wrote Christy Denault, his communications director, "and improving the Department of Child Services will be of the highest priority to the Pence Administration."

Answers to some questions about the future of DCS -- and by, extension, tens of thousands of children and families across Indiana -- could become more clear when the legislative study committee meets again Tuesday to approve a final report and fine-tune recommendations for change.

The Republican-controlled committee has overcome much of the partisan divide that was obvious at its first few sessions, said member Sen. Tim Lanane, D-Anderson.

"When Director Payne resigned, that took a lot of the partisanship out of it -- it wasn't that sense it was about protecting their turf," he said. "With his resignation, I think it allowed everyone to say, 'OK, what can we do to improve the system now?'"

Numerous challenges brought to light

The reality remains, however, that any recommendations from the panel will need GOP approval, given the party's supermajorities in both houses and a Republican governor.

And making headway could be a daunting challenge, given the myriad issues that came to light during the committee hearings:

>> Police, prosecutors, judges and medical professionals testified that the agency's new centralized hotline is a nightmare to deal with.

>> Some advocates complained children are taking a backseat to process and budget concerns. Others said the administration is top-heavy, doesn't listen to legitimate concerns and isn't above retaliating against its critics.

>> Agency officials acknowledged that a nearly 20 percent staff turnover rate -- up from about 9 percent in 2004, before DCS became a standalone entity -- is pushing up caseloads and hindering progress on needed changes.

>> The agency has been unable to make progress on another widely accepted measuring stick: the percentage of children who are re-abused or neglected within six months of a DCS intervention. The "repeat maltreatment rate" in June, the most recent data available, was 15 percent higher than in 2004.

The first test could come as lawmakers debate what to do about the statewide child abuse hotline.

Two ideas for improving hotline system

Lanane and other Democrats favor a plan that would return the bulk of calls to local DCS offices. Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, the committee's co-chairman, and other Republicans favor a hybrid plan where "professional reporters" would have local access, with calls from the public routed through the call center in Indianapolis.

"We think that is a better alternative to what we have," Holdman said, adding that the hybrid system also would be less costly to implement.

Holdman said the committee's work already has prompted positive moves -- a sentiment echoed by some child advocates.

In fact, DCS already is testing out a hybrid approach allowing professional reporters, such as police officers, educators and medical professionals, easier access to DCS staff. The governor's office also responded to staff shortages, Holdman said, by approving the hiring of several hundred new case managers and supervisors to fill vacancies and bumping up pay for key field staff in an effort to reduce future turnover.

But, Holdman acknowledged, more change is needed.

One likely outcome of Tuesday's meeting, he said, will be a recommendation to create a DCS oversight panel. Holdman explained the permanent committee would allow lawmakers to take a deeper look into some of the issues raised during the hearings.

Holdman said he thinks many of those issues can be resolved with administrative action at DCS, rather than legislative changes. That includes the hotline.

Another issue, where Democrats and Republicans appear aligned, is how to get services to children with mental health issues. That help had come through the child welfare system for years, but DCS recently stopped such services, forcing some frayed families to admit to neglect just to get help for their children.

Both Holdman and Lanane said they expect a resolution, though they aren't yet sure whether the new help would come from DCS or another state agency.

Child advocates around the state agreed that there is a strong need for change.

"We just can't keep the status quo," said Davis, of Evansville, who said she was troubled by the growing number of deaths among children associated with DCS. "These kids are just being thrown away, and nobody seems outraged about it."

Lockwood Marine of Fort Wayne, who is a member of the trust fund that distributes proceeds from the sale of the state's Kids First license plates, said he is disappointed the committee didn't put more emphasis on problems other than the hotline, such as an explosion in spending on administrative costs and what he saw as Payne's push to centralize control in Indianapolis.

"For a couple of years, at least, expenditures on services for children stayed flat, while administrative costs more than doubled," he said. "In spite of all the administrators they added, they're still not doing their jobs."

Marine said he hoped Payne's departure would lead to a more open and collaborative leadership at DCS, but he said he hasn't seen that yet.

Whatever happens with the agency's administration, even Daniels acknowledged officials must push to make DCS even more effective.

"We agree with the need for never-ending improvement," he said. "Every child injured is a tragedy, and the quest to do better can never slow down for even a day."